INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Five people were rescued Saturday in two separate incidents, after being swept out to sea by powerful rip currents at Round Island Park beach.

One of the five was a woman, taken to Indian River Medical Center as a precaution after inhaling water.

“She was in a critical situation,” said 23-year-veteran ocean lifeguard Aaron Levy. “In my opinion, she would have drowned.”

Levy’s partner, lifeguard John Dotsey, pulled her to safety.

A man and woman who had tried to help her also were pulled from the ocean by Levy after being caught in the rip current.

Later Saturday, a 13-year-old girl and her father, a recent Army veteran were rescued by lifeguards, Levy said.

He compared rip currents to a river that pulls people out to sea. Levy said the currents remain strong even though last week’s big waves are subsiding.

He recommended always swimming near a lifeguard.

If caught in a rip current, remain calm and swim parallel to shore to escape it, he added.

via Five rescued from powerful rip currents on Indian River County beach | Treasure Coast Talk.

A 12-year-old girl died Tuesday after falling into floodwaters near Flagstaff, Arizona, authorities said.

Shaelyn Wilson had gone to see runoff from a flash flood around 2 p.m., according to the Coconino Sheriff’s Department. A younger sister ran back to tell the father that Shaelyn had fallen into a wash.

The family searched the area near where the girl fell and several agencies also took part in the search, according to Kelli Most, administrative specialist with the sheriff’s department.

The girl was found about a third of a mile from where she went into the water, and her father performed CPR until paramedics arrived. She was pronounced dead at Flagstaff Medical Center.

A massive wildfire last month made the area susceptible to flooding, said Most. “There’s just no greenery there” to prevent runoff, she said. The blaze charred 15,000 acres.

Several small streams pushed over their banks, and flash floods were threatening homes, according to CNN affiliate KPHO.

via Arizona girl, 12, dies in flooding – CNN.com.

Standing next to his young daughter in waist-deep water off Fripp Island on Friday afternoon, Craig Morris felt something softly nudge his leg.

Seconds later, something pulled 6-year-old Ella under the water.

That “something” was a shark, he said.

The 37-year-old father of three quickly pulled the child to the surface.

That’s when he saw the blood and the 9-inch gash on the little girl’s leg, said Heidi Morris, Craig’s wife and Ella’s mother.

“He threw the boogie board they had been using (away) and squeezed her leg together,” said Heidi Morris of the 1 p.m. incident near the Fripp Island Beach Club. “Then he carried her up the beach and booked it to the fire house. There was lots of blood. You could see her bone.”

A Beaufort County paramedic and Fripp Island Fire officers treated Ella until an ambulance arrived and took her to Beaufort Memorial Hospital.

It took 22 stitches to close the bite. Ella was released later that day, Heidi Morrris said.

The family, including sons Jackson, 8, and Parker, 9, of Marietta, Ga., were enjoying the final day of a week-long vacation when the incident occurred, she said. It was their first time vacationing on Fripp.

“We just loved it,” she said. “Earlier in the day, I had even posted pictures and a comment on my Facebook page that we were so happy with our experience. Later that day, I had to tell people about the shark.”

A RARE OCCURRENCE

Emergency room doctors told the family the shark was probably small, between four and five feet long, Heidi Morris said.

Mel Bell, director of the Office of Fisheries Management for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, agreed.

Ella’s wound looked like four smaller bites in a row, probably from a small shark. Typically, a swimmer would see the dorsal fin of a larger animal before it struck, Bell said.

“What you have with sharks is a test bite, to see what it is,” he said. “Then they usually take off, because you’re not a desired food item.”

DNR Sgt. Michael Paul Thomas said Tuesday there is no way to confirm whether the youngster’s wound was inflicted by a shark.

Because shark attacks are so rare, there is no protocol for reporting bites.

In South Carolina, the most recent shark attack that resulted in death was in 1883, Bell said.

“We’re still not sure what kind of shark it was,” he said.

In July 2006, an Ohio man said he was bitten by a shark at Hilton Head Island’s Singleton Beach. The wound required about a dozen stitches on his leg above his ankle. Authorities never confirmed the attack as the work of a shark, but the man said the teeth marks and puncture wounds were evidence enough for him.

In June of that year, a Missouri girl was bitten while playing in about two feet of water near the Breakers resort area of Coligny Beach.

Earlier in the month, a 14-year-old girl was bitten while swimming off Pawleys Island while a 21-year-old woman suffered a foot injury during a shark encounter off Kiawah Island.

Still, shark bites are relatively rare occurrences.

According to statistics compiled by the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, people are 30 times more likely to be struck by lightning.

Thomas said tracking the area shark population is not an exact science, but called the number robust.

“We always have a fairly large number of sharks in our waters,” Thomas said.

He attributed that to deep waters, healthy estuaries and plenty of fish to eat.

“Port Royal and St. Helena sounds are two deep areas for them to come into and spawn, and we have an abundance of fish,” Thomas said.

‘I’M NOT SCARED’

While the incident left her parents shaken, Ella was the picture of courage and composure.

Her mother was amazed at the child’s attitude in the emergency room.

“She was fine, acted like there was absolutely nothing wrong,” Heidi Morris said.

Since the encounter, the six-year-old has continued to be upbeat and chatty, her mother said.

“Yesterday (Monday) all day, she wore a shark T-shirt,” she said.

Her parents said they were happy there was no severe nerve or muscle damage. A doctor said Monday the youngster’s wound was healing well and she should be up and walking in a day or two, her mother said.

Minutes before the attack, Ella had been in the water alone, her mother said.

“We were lucky, because her dad came up and put his arms around her right before it happened,” she said. “I think she felt safe because her daddy was right there.”

“I’m not scared,” Ella told her mother after the attack.

She said something else, too.

“I’ll go back in the water.”

via Ga. girl ‘upbeat’ after being bitten by shark off Fripp Island | islandpacket.com.

Standing next to his young daughter in waist-deep water off Fripp Island on Friday afternoon, Craig Morris felt something softly nudge his leg.

Seconds later, something pulled 6-year-old Ella under the water.

That “something” was a shark, he said.

The 37-year-old father of three quickly pulled the child to the surface.

That’s when he saw the blood and the 9-inch gash on the little girl’s leg, said Heidi Morris, Craig’s wife and Ella’s mother.

“He threw the boogie board they had been using (away) and squeezed her leg together,” said Heidi Morris of the 1 p.m. incident near the Fripp Island Beach Club. “Then he carried her up the beach and booked it to the fire house. There was lots of blood. You could see her bone.”

A Beaufort County paramedic and Fripp Island Fire officers treated Ella until an ambulance arrived and took her to Beaufort Memorial Hospital.

It took 22 stitches to close the bite. Ella was released later that day, Heidi Morrris said.

The family, including sons Jackson, 8, and Parker, 9, of Marietta, Ga., were enjoying the final day of a week-long vacation when the incident occurred, she said. It was their first time vacationing on Fripp.

“We just loved it,” she said. “Earlier in the day, I had even posted pictures and a comment on my Facebook page that we were so happy with our experience. Later that day, I had to tell people about the shark.”

A RARE OCCURRENCE

Emergency room doctors told the family the shark was probably small, between four and five feet long, Heidi Morris said.

Mel Bell, director of the Office of Fisheries Management for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, agreed.

Ella’s wound looked like four smaller bites in a row, probably from a small shark. Typically, a swimmer would see the dorsal fin of a larger animal before it struck, Bell said.

“What you have with sharks is a test bite, to see what it is,” he said. “Then they usually take off, because you’re not a desired food item.”

DNR Sgt. Michael Paul Thomas said Tuesday there is no way to confirm whether the youngster’s wound was inflicted by a shark.

Because shark attacks are so rare, there is no protocol for reporting bites.

In South Carolina, the most recent shark attack that resulted in death was in 1883, Bell said.

“We’re still not sure what kind of shark it was,” he said.

In July 2006, an Ohio man said he was bitten by a shark at Hilton Head Island’s Singleton Beach. The wound required about a dozen stitches on his leg above his ankle. Authorities never confirmed the attack as the work of a shark, but the man said the teeth marks and puncture wounds were evidence enough for him.

In June of that year, a Missouri girl was bitten while playing in about two feet of water near the Breakers resort area of Coligny Beach.

Earlier in the month, a 14-year-old girl was bitten while swimming off Pawleys Island while a 21-year-old woman suffered a foot injury during a shark encounter off Kiawah Island.

Still, shark bites are relatively rare occurrences.

According to statistics compiled by the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, people are 30 times more likely to be struck by lightning.

Thomas said tracking the area shark population is not an exact science, but called the number robust.

“We always have a fairly large number of sharks in our waters,” Thomas said.

He attributed that to deep waters, healthy estuaries and plenty of fish to eat.

“Port Royal and St. Helena sounds are two deep areas for them to come into and spawn, and we have an abundance of fish,” Thomas said.

‘I’M NOT SCARED’

While the incident left her parents shaken, Ella was the picture of courage and composure.

Her mother was amazed at the child’s attitude in the emergency room.

“She was fine, acted like there was absolutely nothing wrong,” Heidi Morris said.

Since the encounter, the six-year-old has continued to be upbeat and chatty, her mother said.

“Yesterday (Monday) all day, she wore a shark T-shirt,” she said.

Her parents said they were happy there was no severe nerve or muscle damage. A doctor said Monday the youngster’s wound was healing well and she should be up and walking in a day or two, her mother said.

Minutes before the attack, Ella had been in the water alone, her mother said.

“We were lucky, because her dad came up and put his arms around her right before it happened,” she said. “I think she felt safe because her daddy was right there.”

“I’m not scared,” Ella told her mother after the attack.

She said something else, too.

“I’ll go back in the water.”

via Ga. girl ‘upbeat’ after being bitten by shark off Fripp Island | islandpacket.com.

MCDONOUGH, Ga. (AP) — Authorities in Henry County say one of two teenagers who were struck by lightning Tuesday night has died.

Fourteen-year-old Eric West died during the night at Henry Medical Center, according to Henry County Coroner Greg Cannon.

Authorities say a 15-year-old girl was also struck by lightning as storms passed through McDonough.

She was also taken to Henry Medical Center. Her identity and condition have not been released.

via Henry Co. Teen Dies After Being Struck By Lightning – 11Alive.com | WXIA | Atlanta, GA.

MARIETTA, Ga. – A 6-year-old girl from Marietta was recovering Tuesday from a shark attack that happened while she and her family were vacationing off the coast of South Carolina. Ella Morris was rescued by her father seconds after the animal pulled her underwater.

Morris was bitten while swimming with her father off Fripp Island in South Carolina. The 6-year-old girl received 22 stitches as a result of the bite.

Morris’ mother said the girl has required very little pain medication since the attack. Morris was unable to walk Tuesday, but she is expected to make a full recovery.

via 6-year-old Marietta Girl Bitten by Shark.

ANCHORAGE – A man riding his bicycle to work Tuesday on a city trail was attacked by a grizzly bear, which swatted his ear and bit him on the leg, police said.

Sean Berkey encountered the bear on the east end of Rover’s Run trail at 5:30 a.m. as he headed to work at the Alaska Native Medical Center, where the 45-year-old works as a pediatric pharmacist. He had crossed a wooden bridge when he surprised the sow, who had a cub with her.

Berkey stopped his bike, and the bear charged. He momentarily used his bike as a shield, said Bruce Bartley, a spokesman for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Berkey played dead — the accepted practice when attacked by a brown bear — and then tried to get away, but the sow came after him again, so again Berkey played dead.

“The bear swatted him and bit him once,” Bartley said, describing the injuries as “fairly minor.”

Berkey eventually got back on his bike and rode to the hospital where he was met by a police officer, said Anita Shell, an Anchorage police department spokeswoman.

It will be up to the municipality to decide whether to close the trail. It was closed two summers ago after a number of serious bear attacks on Rover’s Run, including one in which a 15-year-old girl competing in a bike race suffered a crushed skull and almost died.

Bartley said he doubted there would be any serious consequences for the bear in this case given that it was a sow that was surprised by the bicyclist and was defending her cub.

“By this guy’s account, this was absolutely a bear being a bear,” he said. “He stumbled on to a sow with a cub at close quarters.”

via JuneauEmpire.com – Updates » Tuesday, June 15th, 2010 » Anchorage man survives grizzly attack.

NELSON – A recent bear attack on a four-year-old girl and her grandmother in their yard has prompted a call for diligence.

Conservation officer Len Butler killed the mature male black bear after it clawed Nine Mile resident Jane Tillotson and visiting granddaughter Megan Chapple.

The young girl required six to eight stitches on her leg following the Aug. 24 attack.

“I was babysitting my granddaughters, who are four and six, and we went out to work in my vegetable garden,” Tillotson said.

“We'd been there for maybe 15 or 20 minutes making lots of noise. My littlest granddaughter just yelled for me and I turned and looked at her and a big bear was right behind her.

“The bear swiped at her and cut the back of her calf so she fell. It looked like that bear was going to bite her.”

Tillotson said she scooped up Megan and slowly backed away from the bear with her other granddaughter right behind her.

The bear swiped at the child again, scratching Megan's belly and — though she didn't feel it at the time — Tillotson's thigh.

“I was just shrieking hysterically at the top of my lungs,” said Tillotson. “It was probably no more than a few seconds but it seemed like forever to me [before] it stopped and ambled out of the garden.”

Butler said he doesn't think the attack was predatory in nature.

“Basically the bear was there to get something to eat and these people were in the way,” he said. ” If the bear wanted to kill the little girl, [it] could have.”

When he arrived at the home, Butler said he found a “fairly large” black bear in the neighbour's compost. He had his dog chase the bear into a tree where it was shot.

Garth Mowat, the B.C. Environment Ministry's senior wildlife biologist for the Kootenay region, said it's rare for a black bear to attack and knew of only one other human-related attack by a bear in the past 18 months. “I've not heard of black bears attacking people over food very often,” he said. “There might have been something else going on.”

Mowat suggested the bear may have been afraid or it took the child for a dog that was bothering it.

A few days after the attack, Nelson police shot a black bear hunkered down in a residential area along a road frequented by school children.

Part of the problem, say wildlife experts, is people leaving garbage and compost accessible to bears.

Butler said conservation officers will be issuing more wildlife protection orders to clear garbage, compost and fallen fruit. People who don't comply could be fined $345.

via Public warned after bear attacks girl, woman.

SAINT-HYACINTHE, Que. — A stunned teenage mother was charged with manslaughter Tuesday, one day after her three-week-old daughter was mauled to death by a dog.

On her way out of the Quebec courtroom, the distraught 17-year-old locked eyes with her boyfriend, the newborn baby's father, who was still in disbelief himself.

“I know that it's not really her fault,” the 19-year-old man told reporters before the young woman's youth court appearance.

“She's an excellent mother.”

Police say a dog turned on the newborn after she had been left unattended with two huskies at the couple's home in the village of St-Barnabe-Sud, about 65 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

The baby's father says the mother told him that everything happened quickly at the residence they share with another couple.

He says she went outside to join her mother — the baby's grandmother — for a smoke and she wasn't even a few metres from the girl. Within a matter of seconds, she heard something from inside the house.

“She (the baby) was in a little rocking chair and she was rocking gently,” he said.

“She (the mother) hadn't even closed the door when she heard (a) noise. She went back into the house. And the dog had jumped on the child.

“It was a moment of inattention.”

The huskies, a male and a female, belong to the couple's housemates, the newborn's father said. He described them as “super-affectionate,” obedient pets.

“We never thought this could happen,” he said.

Police also arrested the baby's 37-year-old grandmother Monday, but did not press charges against her.

Andre Williams, the lawyer for the 17-year-old girl, said the manslaughter charge laid by the Crown came as a surprise, especially so soon after the baby's death.

“She's destroyed,” Williams said of the mother, who shuffled into the courtroom wearing track pants and a grey T-shirt.

“She lost her child yesterday. She's 17 years old, so you can imagine how she is (right) now.”

Williams contends the charge of manslaughter, which carries no minimum or maximum sentence, will be very difficult to prove. He had expected a charge of criminal negligence causing death.

“I'm quite surprised that they've already laid charges against a young girl who is in fragile state, on top of which they also detained her (on Monday night),” he said at the St-Hyacinthe courthouse.

The teenager, who cannot be identified because she's a minor, returns to court on Aug. 31 after her release Tuesday.

As part of the conditions of the girl's release, Judge Viviane Primeau told her she is not allowed to look after children under the age of 12.

“We had the proof that we needed this morning, so that's the reason why we have made our decision,” prosecutor Caroline Fontaine said of the manslaughter charge.

One neighbour in the rural community of St-Barnabe-Sud, which has a population of about 900, said he's seen the two dogs running around wild, not appearing to obey orders from their master.

“I live in the country and I'm not comfortable with the idea of having dogs running around on my property without being supervised,” Guy Vaillancourt, himself a grandfather of a three-year-old girl, said in an interview.

Vaillancourt recalled that the animals once approached his own dog but appeared friendly.

“I didn't have any problems with them,” he said. “I petted them and they did not show any aggressiveness.”

The teenage father, wearing a faded, tattered AC/DC T-shirt, said he took anti-depressants to help cope with the shock of the previous 24 hours.

The man said he appreciated all the support he's received from family and friends, several of whom were in the courtroom Tuesday.

“I have a funeral for this child to take care of and right now I don't make any money, so it's going to be very difficult,” he said.

“I'm trying to sort things out however I can.”

via CTV Montreal – Mother charged with manslaughter – CTV News.

Link

OCALA, Fla. – A 3-year-old girl who was attacked by a bulldog outside her Ocala-area home has died.

According to a Marion County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman, the girl was playing outside while her mother cleaned a dog pen Saturday. She got tangled in a dog chain when her mother went inside the home.

That’s when a male dog attacked the girl, whose name wasn’t immediately released.

The Ocala Star-Banner reports that four dogs were outside the home at the time of the attack, but investigators believe just one of the animals was involved. All the dogs were taken by county animal services officials.